Waking Up
by kittyluv
Summary: Sequel to Deadly Nightmare. Now that he is home, how can he live through the nightmares that still plague him of that awful night? Therapy comes in many different styles.
1. Finally Home

Hey y'all!

I'm very very very very sorry it has taken me so long to update with the sequel! I've been having a pretty rough time at home. I tried to update this last night, but for some reason it said that the site is temporarily unavailable; so I did it now! And on top of that, my mind loves to wander, so I am currently working on two OTHER CSI stories also. Neither one has anything to do with "Deadly Nightmare" or "Waking Up", but the ideas just popped into my head, so I began to write them down.

Oh yea, I have to make a very important announcement pertaining to "Deadly Nightmare". THE POEM AT THE END OF THE STORY WAS NOT WRITTEN BY ME! I was in such a hurry to beat the storm with that chappie that I forgot to mention that the poem "Deadly Nightmare" was beautifully written by Rehgai! She has even written a few more for me and I am working them into this story. So, if I forget to mention it again, ALL POEMS IN THIS STORY (unless otherwise stated) WERE WRITTEN BY REHGAI! Thank you. (**Bows**)

So, as for this story, IF YOU HAVEN'T READ DEADLY NIGHTMARE, THAN GO READ IT FIRST, OR YOU WILL BE TOTALLY LOST!

All I can really say about this chappie, is that I'm not real happy with it. It's real slow and kinda boring (ok, its boring) but it's the only way to start this story from where it basically left off in "Deadly Nightmare". I hope you guys and gals enjoy it so far, and I'll work very hard on getting it writing so I can add more!

Disclaimer- I do not own any of the characters so far featured in this story (maybe later). The only thing I do own is my story idea and the prequel that this is written off of!

OoO

Chapter One- Finally Home

OoO

_Twelve hours. Twelve hours of pain and terror. Wondering if you'll live. Wondering if your friends will find you in time. _

_Steady pain wracks through your head, wrists and ankles every time you try and move. _

_Loud noises are heard overhead. Hope floods through you as you think about being saved. Then everything disappears in a burst of white light._

XxX

Nick opened the door to Greg's apartment, flooding the room with artificial light.

"Ok Greggo, easy now." He turns back to put a hand on Greg's shoulder as the younger man limped slowly through the door.

Greg was panting heavily, exhausted from the short walk from the parking lot. "Thanks…Nicky," came his raspy answer, his voice still badly effected by his torn throat.

"No problem Buddy. Let's get you to bed."

Greg shook his head. "Just the couch. I'm not…tired now."

Nick didn't even need to look at his friend to know how tired he was, but he slowly led the way to the couch. Greg fell heavily onto the cushions with a relieved sigh.

Nick stood close by as he carefully analyzed his friend. The younger CSI was breathing heavily, having put too much strain on his tired body for one day. He was covered in sweat and his skin was pale except for the flush in his cheeks.

"I'll go grab ya a glass of water, all right? The doc said you should take your pills first thing comin home."

Greg just nodded absently, waving his hand weakly in the general direction that he was pretty sure his kitchen was.

Nick was half surprised to find the kitchen completely spotless, but for a set of dishes that had been placed in the drainer. Nick didn't know exactly what to expect from Greg; half of him expected to find the apartment in total chaos (as was Greg's personality) but the other half knew it would be neat and tidy (just as he liked to keep his lab at work).

He quickly made his way over to the drainer and withdrew a glass. Filling it with water from the sink, he made his way back to the living room.

A small smirk spread across Nick's face when he returned to the couch. Greg was slouching heavily in his seat, his eyes barely open and fogged with fatigue.

"Hey Greg, let's take those pills quick, then you're goin ta bed. No fightin me on it either."

Greg desperately wanted to protest, not wanting to fall asleep so soon, but he was quickly losing the battle anyway. He didn't want to fall into that uneasy darkness again, or the nightmares would return full force.

"Where are your pills at Greg?" The question didn't seem to register the first time, so Nick asked again, this time barely seeing a spark of recognition in the younger male's eyes. Greg slowly reached into the pocket of his sweats and held out three different pill bottles.

Nick carefully took all three, making sure not to jar Greg's gauzed wrist in the process. He went to the coffee table, just out of Greg's view. He pulled one pill out of each bottle; a light blue one for the allergic reaction, brown to help heal Greg's throat, and the pink was a strong pain killer.

Nick quickly looked toward Greg to make sure he wasn't looking, before pulling a fourth bottle from his own pocket. Pulling out a single white pill, he remembered what Dr. Rowland had said.

_Greg will have trouble sleeping for at least the first week he is home."_

_He held out a small bottle._

"_These are strong sleeping tablets. Give him one with his other pills when it is time for bed. It will allow him no less than eight hours of sleep. If he still has trouble sleeping after a week, come see me and I'll prescribe more."_

Nick sighed quietly. _'Sorry I'm doing this under your nose Buddy, but you need to get some sleep."_

Grabbing all four pills and the glass of water, he took them back to the couch. Nick hoped, that with Greg as exhausted as he was, he wouldn't notice the extra pill. He smiled sadly as Greg sighed and popped all four pills in his mouth at once, washing them down with the whole glass of water.

"Ok Bud, get to bed. I'll be out here on the recliner."

Greg's nod was barely visible before he unsteadily rose to his feet. Nick quickly reached for Greg's shoulder and helped him into the next room. As he was already in a pair of sweats and a t-shirt, Greg just plopped right into bed.

Nick moved to the door and turned to shut off the light, when he saw Greg turn on his side in bed. _'Still don't like lyin on your side huh? Don't worry, it will get better.'_

Nick flipped off the light and went back into the living room. He sat down in the recliner with a sigh. After a minute, he realized he wasn't tired at all, being as he would usually be up around 10 P.M. anyway.

Not wanting to turn on the TV just yet, Nick stood and made his way back to the kitchen. Now that he wasn't worrying about settling Greg in, he wanted to take a little time to look around the apartment.

The kitchen was relatively large for an apartment; with a fridge on one side, cabinets on the other, and an island standing in the middle. Sitting on the corner of the island, was an answering machine and the base to a cordless phone, the phone was missing.

Opening the door next to the fridge, Nick found himself looking at Greg's pantry. To his surprise, it was quite empty; a couple packages of Ramen Noodles, a jar of peanut butter, half a loaf of bread, and a box of the most sugary cereal Nick had ever seen.

'_Typicla college food. Greg has changed much over the years, it seems.'_

The fridge didn't bode much better; a gallon of milk with only about a mouthful left, a jar of grape jelly and-

"What the hell? Well, at least I know where the phone went." Nick laughed as he pulled the freezing piece of technology from the fridge. "I don't think I wanna know why this is in here."

Shutting the fridge door, he walked over to the island and placed the phone back on its base, before returning to the living room.

After a few minutes of complete silence, Nick plopped into the recliner. _'Greg isn't going to wake up for at least eight hours, and he isn't in any sort of critical health that could effect it. Maybe I can just run home real quick and grab some clothes and stuff for awhile. I'm sure he'll be ok.'_

Nick slowly stood and walked toward the bedroom. Greg hadn't moved an inch since the last time Nick had left. The glow from the lights outside the window bathed his face with an eerie glow, causing his skin to glow an even sicker white.

'_Don't worry Greggo, you'll be good soon.'_

Walking back to the front door, Nick slipped his shoes on and left, locking the door behind him.

The apartment was quiet and still, except for the quiet whimpering coming from the bedroom.

OoO

Well, what do y'all think so far? Pretty boring huh? It should hopefully pick up speed soon! I promise!

So, that's all I have for right now. If anyone is interested in my other two stories, I can start adding them right now also. Or if you think it would be too confusing having three stories running at once, that's fine too. Just let me know what y'all think! C-in ya!

T.T.F.N!

Ali


	2. Preperations

Hey y'all!

I am so VERY sorry that I haven't updated this story in over TWO MONTHS! So much has happened to me since then (including my grandfather's dog dying, who was like a best friend to my sis and me). I hope you all can forgive me!You'll also have to forgive me for this chappie. It's sadly just a filler and doesn't have Greg in it at all. I am having a very hard time with this story for some reason, but I promise I won't leave it unfinished! NOTHING IS LEFT UNDONE! I just had a lil brainstorm with it, so hopefully it'll move along smoother.

Grrr…I HATE this new rule bout not being able to review to the reviewers! They're what keep the stories ALIVE! I promise that I will personally e-mail each reviewer of this and any of my stories cuz y'all deserve it!

Oh yes, sorry, but just one more note, this story may look like it is a slash story, btu it isn't. I repeat, THIS STORY ISN'T AND NEVER WILL BE A SLASH STORY, ONLY BEST FRIENDS!

Disclaimer: I listened to Jiminy Cricket and wasn't impressed. I wished upon a star, but I didn't get the rights to CSI. THE CRICKET LIES!

_XxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXx_

_Chapter 2- Preperations_

_XxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXx_

"_Hey Nicky. How's he doin?"_

"He's doin good Cath, now that he's outta the hospital. But he's so knocked down on medication and pain killers he can barely walk."

There was a short pause on the other end. Then…

"_How are you doing?"_

Nick's eyebrows rose, "Me? Don't worry bout me. Greggo's the one-"

"_Nick, Greg isn't the only one who needs to gather strength. If you want him to get better, he needs you to be strong too."_

Nick sighed heavily, putting a hand to his forehead as he slid down the wall behind him into a sitting position. Too much had happened in such a short amount of time; Nick was having a little trouble processing it all. "I know. I know. I'll be fine. I gotta go. I'm at home gettin some stuff while Greg's asleep, but I should head back."

"_Ok. Plan on the rest of us being there later?"_

It was more of a question than a statement, as Catherine was giving Nick the option to say yes or no, considering his thoughts on Greg's condition at the time.

Nick didn't hesitate before his answer, knowing it would be the best thing for Greg right now. "You can count on it."

Nick could almost see the smile grace Catherine's lips. _"Take care of yourself Nicky."_

"I will. See ya."

Nick clicked the END button and put the phone back in his pocket. He had been home for almost two hours when Catherine called, showering and getting his things together for his stay at Greg's. He had found the biggest duffle bag he owned and filled it with almost all of his clothes, books, CD's and an overnight bag with the stuff from the bathroom.

Heaving the heavy burden on his shoulder, Nick made it to the front door. Hesitating with his hand on the knob, he set the bag down and went back to the kitchen.

Across the room was his fridge, and next to that was the pantry. Compared to the meager number of items in Greg's kitchen, Nick felt overfed and showy. Foods of all kinds filled both spaces and Nick made sure that neither one was ever empty, until now. Pulling out two large paper bags from a drawer, he filled one with all different kinds of foods from the pantry; pasta, two loaves of bread, macaroni and cheese, many different soups etc. The other bag contained chilled items from the fridge; a gallon of milk, sodas, meats and cheese, and a few other things he thought would spoil if left.

"Ok," Nick sighed as he hefted the bags into his arms. "Now I know why I just _had_ to go grocery shopping at 3 this afternoon. We should be fine for a little while on this stuff. Darn, persistent instincts." Setting down one of the bags, he put his duffle bag over his shoulder, and after a few minutes of wrestling and nearly dropping the bags, he had locked the front door and made it to his car.

"Ugh," he groaned loudly as he plopped down into the driver's seat. He just sat there for a bit, hands resting with his keychain in his lap.

After a few moments, Nick realized he hadn't moved since he sat down, completely lost in his thoughts. He hadn't been able to actually sit and think about everything, having been running around trying to get everything as back to normal as he could, and it all suddenly came crashing down on him. Nick slowly set his arms on top of the steering wheel and laid his chin on top of them.

Gregory Sanders, crazy ex-lab tech, had been kidnapped from a crime scene.

Greg Sanders, CSI 1 for barely a month, had been buried alive.

Greg, his biggest rival when it came to watching a football game, almost suffocated to death not even a foot away inside a madman's excuse for a coffin.

Greggo, the stingiest person he's ever seen when it came to coffee, could barely breathe because of the allergic reaction he had to the medication.

G, his best friend, almost died for doing the job that he loved so dearly.

Nick took a deep breath and let it out in a shaky sigh. _"I can't believe we almost lost him. Just because Greg does his job and does it well, he got kidnapped and almost killed by it. And all the others; Debbie Thompson, Mike Stevens, they are all gone because they helped convict a madman and sentenced him to death. It's all so meaningless!_

Smacking the steering wheel with his open palms, Nick let out another sigh and leaned back in the seat with his head back, looking at the roof of the car. _'At least it's over. Greg will heal and everything will go back to normal.'_

Temporarily satisfied with that answer, Nick put the keys in the ignition, and pulled out of the drive.

XxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXx

Thank y'all for sticking through this with me. I know it isn't all that interesting yet, but it will HOPEFULLY pick up soon!

And I PROMISE updates won't be months apart anymore! That was just a consequence of unforeseen circumstances!

Last thing; because I am so easily distracted, I have come up with two whole other stories (as mentioned last chappie) and they are A LOT farther than this one is in the writing process. If anyone is interested in reading them, feel free to ask and I'll put em up. I just don't wanna do it and have people be completely confused or anything. So they will not be posted until after this story is finished, unless asked for.

Luv y'all and c-in ya soon!

Ali


	3. Settling In

No excuse can make up for how long I've been gone. All I can say is I hope some of my readers are still here and willing to read my story, as well as a few new people looking for a story to read.

Thank you all.

XOXOXOXOXOXOXOXO

Chapter 3

XOXOXOXOXOXOXOXO

**He knew that he would of not made it without his friends**

**And knew without them, he would of had an untimely end**

**So he was forever grateful to the people who set him free**

**His friends, his fellow workers...His family**

**XxX**

Grissom closed the little notepad for what seemed the hundredth time since he found it just the day before in Greg's hospital room.

There really wasn't anything special about the pad itself; a black cover and a metal spiral holding the 80 pages together. But it was what was written on the first three and a half pages that kept drawing the entomologist to open the cardboard cover.

Grissom hadn't shown the poem to anyone else, unsure if even having looked at it himself had broken some sort of taboo. He would return it to Greg the first chance he got, but he'd never forget the powerful words his young teammate wrote within its pages.

A soft knock on the door caused Grissom's eyes to quickly snap from the notepad on his desk. Sara Sidle stood smiling at him from the open doorway. He slowly moved the notepad to the side of the desk, trying to act like it was nothing of importance so Sara wouldn't ask about it.

The brunette stepped forward into the room and stopped a few feet from the desk. "Everyone's planning to go see Greg after shift ends. You interested?"

Grissom hoped she didn't notice when he eyes involuntarily flicked to the notepad and back again. He gave a short nod. "Yeah, I'd like that."

Sara's smile softened a bit as she returned his nod. She turned to make her way back out of the room when she came to a halt and turned again. Her smile was completely gone, replaced by a look of sorrow and slight fear.

"You don't think this will cause Greg to leave do you? Make him want to leave the field?"

Grissom had been thinking over the same topic himself for the past few hours. A traumatic experience such as this would be a very good reason for Greg to decide to quit the field and go back to the lab, or even worse, leave all together. He met Sara's eyes and gave the only answer he could.

"I don't know Sara. I really don't know."

OoOoOoOoOoOoOoOo

It was almost 2am by the time Nick parked his car outside Greg's apartment again. About four hours since he got the younger male home and in bed where he could rest and recover.

He sat quietly in his car once again for a short time, letting his thoughts settle and come together before he had to move again. No matter where his thoughts took him, they all led back to one thing:

"_Chris Jackson better be glad wherever in Hell he is, because if I had gotten a hold of him, death would have seemed merciful."_

Nick shook the thoughts from his head and quickly took the keys from the ignition as he started to get out of the vehicle. Going to the back of his Tahoe, he opened the glass panel and pulled out his duffel and the two large paper bags.

Just as he had at home, he shuffled and juggled his way across the lot and fussed with the keys to open the apartment door. He made it through and leaned against the door to shut it, hitting the deadbolt with his shoulder until it gave the telltale click that it had locked.

Heaving a sigh of relief that he had made it without dropping anything, Nick fell silent and listened to the stillness of the apartment. Everything was as he had left it; except for the quiet sound that came from the bedroom.

Nick cocked an eyebrow as he listened harder, thinking Greg may have just rolled over or snored in his sleep. But as the seconds ticked by he heard the sound again, quiet whimpering.

His eyes grew wide as he ran to the bedroom, unknowingly dropping all three bags as he went. He didn't even notice as a container of grapes broke open and a gallon of milk exploded as they landed, spilling their contents across the tiled floor.

Bursting into the open bedroom door, Nick saw Greg thrashing on the bed, in the throes of a terrifying nightmare. Greg seemed to be having trouble moving, keeping his hands and feet close together.

"_As if he were still tied up," _Nick thought as he knelt next to the bed and placed a hand on Greg's head.

"Greg? Greg! Come on buddy wake up, you're all right."

But Greg continued to thrash, showing no signs of waking.

Nick began to worry as he tried for a few moments longer to wake Greg with no success. Then it hit him.

"_The sleeping pill. He must be so medicated from it that he can't wake up and is hallucinating."_

Climbing into the bed, Nick pulled the smaller male into his lap and held him tightly, whispering quietly to him.

"I got ya buddy. Nothing is gonna happen to ya while I'm here."

After a moment, Greg began to quiet, trembling slightly and whining every few minutes.

Nick buried his face in his friend's hair and shook his head slowly. _"No more. I won't give that to you anymore. I won't be the cause for you having to relive that over and over and not be able to escape."_

The two stayed like this for awhile, until Greg finally calmed and fell into what Nick hoped was a restful sleep. Not wanting to disturb Greg by lifting the sleeping male off of him, Nick just leaned his head back against the headboard and sighed quietly, settling in for the rest of the night.

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End file.
